This paper presents the development, the achievements and the performance of a Multipurpose Color Display (MPCD)
and an Up-Front Control Display (UFCD) for the F/A-18 E/F aircraft. Each subassembly of the two displays is
described including design trade-offs, problems encountered during the development and selected solutions.
Technological achievements are highlighted such as an LED backlight, an infra-red touch panel and the extremely
severe environmental conditions we had to meet. The final performance of the two displays significantly exceeds the
originally specified requirements.
Not less important, the paper describes achievements such as very fast development time, design to cost and the
outstanding cooperation between the companies involved in this development. The two displays were flying 18 months
after the start of the development at the full satisfaction of the pilots.
KEYWORDS: Light emitting diodes, LED backlight, Lamps, LCDs, RGB color model, LED displays, Cockpit displays, Waveguides, Optical filters, Temperature metrology
Avionic AMLCD Displays employ backlights for the illumination of the AMLCD device for viewing under all ambient conditions. Backlight illumination is typically achieved by the use of fluorescent lamps. Fluorescent lamps offer high efficacy, but need special conditioning for operation under all environmental conditioning. This conditioning requires a disproportionate amount of aircraft power and relatively long warm up time. The use of LED based backlights overcomes these characteristics. This paper presents comparison of the two technologies. A LED backlight for a fighter aircraft avionic display is briefly described.
The viewing angle requirements for aircraft cockpit displays significantly vary. The variation dependency is analyzed as a function of aircraft type. The envelope requirement is deducted and analyzed against commercially available Commercial-Off-The-Shelf (COTS) and special AMLCD's. The very-wide-viewing angle AMLCD need is established.
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